The X Factor Lothario says: “I’ve never bought lingerie for anyone and, to be honest, I haven’t got a clue where to start.”

Frankie isn’t alone when it comes to being clueless – 13million Brit men say they haven’t even started their Christmas shopping.

The 19-year-old former Celebrity Big Brother star is one of them. He says: “I still haven’t done any this year, even though I’ve got loads of family to buy for.”

And as Frankie hit London’s Oxford Street in a fun hunt for some Christmas goodies, attempting to buy undies for girlfriend Leah Hudson left him bemused.

In the lingerie department of Debenhams’ flagship store he rifled through the huge variety of styles, colours and sizes on offer, shook his head and said: “It’s a minefield!” And when you’re a talent-show heartthrob, hitting the stores isn’t easy.

Frankie, who has just launched debut EP The Motorcycle, was mobbed as he searched for prezzies.

Rather than concentrating on the task in hand, the cheeky lad even managed to grab a snog under the mistletoe with one shopper.

At iconic toy store Hamleys, Frankie found plenty of excuses to get distracted from the task, too, as he took on the shop’s elves with bubble guns, then hung out with Lego versions of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, before trying out some of the gadgets he would like to find in his own stocking.

But he did pick out a jumping dog toy as a present for his own puppy Trevor, a four-month-old French bulldog. “He’s going to love this,” said Frankie.

Finally, after three hours of rushing around the shops and getting loaded up with bags, Frankie was ready for a break.

He hit the pub for a reviving pint, as well as spot of festive mulled wine, while checking out best-selling erotic tome Fifty Shades Of Grey.

Frankie knows that it’s important to treat yourself as well as others during the annual shopping dash.

He says: “One Christmas I bought myself a laptop, and this year it will be a trip to New York with Leah.

“I really love Christmas, but the food is probably my favourite part. You can’t beat Christmas dinner with all the trimmings.”

But nothing can beat the gift Frankie, received as a 10-year-old at home in Brighton.

“My dad got me a quad bike,” he revealed. “It was the best present I ever got, without a doubt.”

He added: “The worst was a selection box of little bottles with different kinds of booze in them. I just wanted the full-sized bottles!”

Before flying off across the Atlantic Frankie performs at the O2 Academy Islington, north London, tonight. And he has been following this year’s X Factor avidly.

He says: “I’m really glad James Arthur won – he is an ­awesome performer with an amazing voice and seems like a really nice bloke too.”

Frankie’s Catastrophic ­Casanova EP will be released on iTunes next month.